Request for Approval of Research
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INSTITUTIONAL REVIEW BOARD 73 Tremont St. Boston, MA 02108 Phone: (617) 725-4169 Fax: (617) 725-4166 Protocol Number: Email:[email protected] FOR IRB USE ONLY----- Meets Criteria for Exemption Does Not Meet Criteria for Exemption under category ______ HUMAN SUBJECT RESEARCH APPLICATION EXEMPTION FROM CONTINUING REVIEW BY THE INSTITUTIONAL REVIIEW BOARD Instructions: Please complete this form with all appropriate signatures and attach a copy of the study protocol and all supporting documentation, to include verification of CITI training for key personnel for all new non-exempt human subject research. All the questions must be addressed in order to provide the Institutional Review Board with the necessary information to review your proposed research study. IRB approval must be obtained prior to beginning any non-exempt human subjects research. The application should be written in layman’s terms such that it can be understood by a non-scientist. 1. GENERAL INFORMATION: Protocol Title: A comparison of methods aimed at enhancing student engagement in an ECR course Date: 12/13/13 2. PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Name: Susan M Orsillo CITI Certified: Yes Date: 10/28/12 School/Department: CAS Psychology Campus Mailing Address: 41 Temple St/ Donohue Telephone Number: (617)305-1924 E-mail Address:[email protected] Faculty Staff 3. CO-INVESTIGATOR: If additional space is needed, please add on a separate page. Name: CITI Certified: Yes Date: School/Department: Campus Mailing Address: Telephone Number: ( ) - E-mail Address: Faculty Staff Student 4. RESEARCH STAFF: If additional space is needed, please add on a separate page. Name CITI Certified To Be Determined Yes Date: Yes Date: Yes Date: 5. COLLABORATORS: If you will be conducting this study in collaboration with non-Suffolk investigators or in non-Suffolk facilities, please complete the section below. If the IRB from a collaborating institution has approved their participation in this research study, attach a copy of the IRB approval letter. N/A Name Affiliated Institution IRB Approval CITI Certified Yes No Pending Yes Yes No Pending Yes Yes No Pending Yes Do the collaborating institutions hold a Federalwide Assurance (FWA)? Yes No If yes, specify which institutions hold an FWA: Does the involvement of Suffolk University include the receipt of a sub-award from a collaborating institution? Yes No Does any part of this research involve collaboration with an independent (not with FWA institution or organization) investigator? Yes No If yes, please identify investigator: Is the involvement of a Suffolk University investigator limited to the evaluation of archived de-identified data? Yes No If yes, check Category 4 under Section 7 and complete Sections 8, 15, 16, 18, 23, 25 and 26 only. 6. FUNDING SOURCES: If the study is funded, please provide a copy of the full grant, proposal and/or award N/A External Federal-Funding Agency: External Non-Federal Funding Source: Suffolk University Institutional Review Board Page 1of 6 Human Subjects Research Application Form, Version 5.6.13 7. EXEMPTION CATEGORIES: The following categories of research are exempt from continuing review by the IRB. Check all that apply Category 1. Research conducted in established or commonly accepted educational settings, involving normal educational practices such as: • research on regular and special education instructional strategies, or • research on the effectiveness of or the comparison among instructional techniques, curricula, or classroom management methods. Category 2. Research involving the use of educational tests (cognitive, diagnostic, aptitude, achievement), survey procedures, interview procedures or observation of public behavior, unless: • information obtained is recorded in such a manner that human subjects can be identified, directly or through identifiers linked to the subjects; and • any disclosure of the human subjects' responses outside the research could reasonably place the subjects at risk of criminal or civil liability or be damaging to the subjects' financial standing, employability, or reputation. Note: this exemption does NOT apply to research involving children as subjects, except for research involving observation of public behavior when the investigator(s) do not participate in the activities being observed. Category 3. Research involving the use of educational tests (cognitive, diagnostic, aptitude, achievement), survey procedures, interview procedures, or observation of public behavior that otherwise would not be exempt if: • the human subjects are elected or appointed public officials or candidates for public office; or • federal statute(s) require(s) without exception that the confidentiality of the personally identifiable information will be maintained throughout the research and thereafter. Category 4. Research involving the collection or study of existing data, documents, records, pathological specimens, or diagnostic specimens, if these sources are publicly available or if the information is recorded by the investigator in such a manner that subjects cannot be identified, directly or through identifiers linked to the subjects. Category 5. Research and demonstration projects which are conducted by or subject to the approval of department or agency heads, and which are designed to study, evaluate, or otherwise examine: • public benefit or service programs; • procedures for obtaining benefits or services under those programs; • possible changes in or alternatives to those programs or procedures; or • possible changes in methods or levels of payment for benefits or services under those programs. Category 6. Taste and food quality evaluation and consumer acceptance studies if: • wholesome foods without additives are consumed or • a food is consumed that contains a food ingredient at or below the level and for a use found to be safe, or agricultural chemical or environmental contaminant at or below the level found to be safe, by the Food and Drug Administration or approved by the Environmental Protection Agency or the Food Safety and Inspection Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. 8. PURPOSE AND SCOPE: Please provide a brief summary of any relevant background information, study aims and its hypothesis. Please provide a rationale for the use of human subjects in meeting your study objectives. Background: According to the 9th annual report on the state of online learning in U.S. higher education (Allen & Seaman, 2011) over 6.1 million students took at least one online course during the Fall of 2012, representing an increase of 560,000 students over the previous year. Almost 1/3 of all college students now take at least one course online. Blended or hybrid learning, which has been defined as a course in which 30 to 79% of the proportion of content is delivered online, has also grown dramatically in recent years, although at a somewhat slower rate (Allen, Seaman, & Garrett, 2007). A recent meta-analysis demonstrated that blended/hybrid classes (but not fully online courses) are associated with stronger learning outcomes than face-to-face instruction alone (Means et al., 2010). Blended courses also appear to enhance a sense of classroom community more than online or face-to-face instruction (Rovai & Jordan, 2004). Over the past decade, there has been a proliferation of pedagogical recommendations regarding best practices in blended learning, including the development of the Blended Toolkit, an online compendium of effective practices, processes, research, faculty development, model courses, and evaluation resources (UCF & AASCU, 2013). Although these resources are extremely helpful, it can be difficult to synthesis the diversity of available information and translate it into specific practices. In an attempt to identify commonalities across these various guidelines, McGee and Reis (2012) analyzed 67 published descriptions of best practices in blended/hybrid learning. One consistent finding is that varied interactivity, involving instructor to student, student to student, and student to other resources is perceived to be key to student engagement in blended/hybrid courses. Interestingly, learner-to-learner interaction can predict course satisfaction more strongly than learner-to-instructor interaction (Jung et al., 2002; Rodriguez, 2006), thus research into methods that enhance such interaction is critical. Study Aims: The goal of the present study is investigate the impact of guided small group online discussions in enhancing classroom community and improving professional development among students enrolled in a psychology internship course. This is an exploratory project - I do not have specific hypotheses. Suffolk University Institutional Review Board Page 1of 6 Human Subjects Research Application Form, Version 5.6.13 Participants All students, aged 18 or older, enrolled in Psychology Internship (Psy 350a and Psy 350b) during the Spring 2014 and Summer 2014 will be eligible for participation. No more than 100 students will participate. The rationale for using human subjects is that the research question is only relevant to humans. Duration: From: 1/6/2014 To: 1/5/2015 Study Site(s): Suffolk University 9. DESCRIPTION OF STUDY POPULATION Total Number of Subjects: 100 Age Range: 18 and older Characteristics of Study Population: Please check all that apply. Elderly Children Suffolk Students/Staff Educationally-Disadvantaged Persons Non-English Speaking Economically Disadvantaged Persons Ethnic Minorities (exclusively) Pregnant Women Fetuses/Neonates Other: 10. SELECTION OF